Overcast skies and intermittent rain greeted the riders. In the first km, Fumiyuki Beppu (RadioShack) and Pierre Cazaux (Euskaltel-Euskadi) escaped, and Yuri Krivtsov (Ag2r) joined them. The peloton kept the three fugitives on a short leash, and their advantage maxed out at 6:18.

Saxo Bank began to chase and cut the lead to between three and four minutes. The peloton gradually pared the gap to less than three minutes with 50 km left and to 1:45 with 20 km left. With 11 km remaining, the bunch reeled in the break.

With three km to go, David Millar (Garmin) attacked. The peloton, led by HTC, caught him just before the one-km banner.

Danilo Hondo (Lampre) led out Petacchi. With 250 m left, Petacchi burst into the lead with Cavendish on his wheel. The Manxman held his fire for another 100 m and then came around the Italian for the win.

In the overall, Contador leads Konstantin Sivtsov (HTC) by 0:59 and Christophe Le Mevel (Garmin) by 1:19. Stage 11 will not change this state of affairs. The hilly, 144-km ride from Tortoreto Lido to Castelfidardo is tailor-made for a group of no-hope escapees. Who will make the getaway? Check in at www.roadcycling.com and find out!